


He's perfect, I need him

by mickeymouseno1



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Producer Park Chanyeol, Record Producer/Intern AU, a touch of angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-24
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2019-04-07 08:48:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14077239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mickeymouseno1/pseuds/mickeymouseno1
Summary: Producer Park Chanyeol is looking for the perfect voice for his new album.Kyungsoo is literally no-one. He just gets the coffees and sandwiches.On the sidelines, Jongdae and Joonmyun leech off the free food.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First time posting in this fandom.
> 
> This fic was started in 2016, but I just didn't do much with it until now, but let's see how it goes.

Kyungsoo is balancing 3 coffees, 6 éclairs, 5 sandwiches and the entire weight of his family’s disappointment at his perceived straying off their meticulously laid out path. Maybe not the last one literally, but he can feel it all the same as he kicks open the door.

“What was that dreadful noise, Kyungsoo? There are very high crime rates in that area you moved into, you know,” comes his mother’s tinny voice through his phone speaker. Kyungsoo simply grunts in reply while his mother continues her daily routine of judging his failure at doing something with his life.

“Yeah, okay, I’m gonna hang up, I have actual work to do.” Kyungsoo winces as he cuts off his mother’s offended reply. Future Kyungsoo just entered a contract of pain and suffering at the hands of the Do family. Present Kyungsoo needs to get these coffees and sandwiches to his co-workers.

Of course, as per his family’s expectations, he manages to spectacularly fail at that, and the sandwiches go flying just as he enters the office. His best friend, Jongdae, pops his head out from the break room and appears to consider helping Kyungsoo for a moment. That’s before he turns away with a shit-eating grin on his face. Kyungsoo flips him off internally (because he’d probably spill the coffees next if he actually did that).

“Fucking cat-like supposed best friends who I’m going to deliver into an early grave…”

Kyungsoo’s rant is cut off by a handsome face grinning down at him. Shocking red hair, annoyingly wide smile and big ears aside, as well as the fact that it looks way too fucking awake for 9am on a Monday morning, he can appreciate a nice face. Wait, is that face looking at him? Shit, that face is looking at him. Kyungsoo can’t remember for the life of him if he managed to apply BB cream this morning. Why exactly did he think that? That face is still looking at him. That smile is sorta creepy now with all the teeth showing.

“Are you okay?”

Kyungsoo stares numbly at soft lips that are moving before he is rudely awoken by a slap to his face. He cradles his reddened cheek and glares at the offending hand, which is connected to Jongdae, who seems to have regretted all he’s done up to this moment in his 25 year existence, and yep, that’s him screeching and running out the door now.

“Umm… are you okay?”

Who keeps asking that, Kyungsoo fumes internally. Looking around, he doesn’t see anyone else in the vicinity. Only those stupid lips that won’t stop moving. Maybe he can make them stop with his mouth. It’s only when he leans in that he realises sound is coming out of those lips he’d been leaning towards. Shit. It’s a person. A human being. Kyungsoo groans. He should’ve stayed in bed today.

He scrambles to pick up everything, silently thanking the gods that nothing seems to have fallen out the paper bags. Last week, when he’d had to make another trip to the bakery, that rainbow-haired brat Sehun laughed at him while unceremoniously dumping another batch of fresh pastries in his hands. Okay, maybe Sehun the brat isn’t that bad after all, but it’s the thought that counts.

Kyungsoo dusts himself off and makes for his meeting, which is he now so late for, and god, he can’t handle another of Junmyeon’s lectures on tardiness. Not when he has to drag that hypocrite out of bed every morning and drive him to work, lest his incompetent boss remains forever lost in his bedroom’s ever-increasing pile of junk.

“Hey, wait!”

Kyungsoo whips around with a frenzy. “What. Do. You. Want?”

The cute guy with the abysmal hair dye nearly bumps into him with how quickly Kyungsoo stops. He stands there, towering over Kyungsoo, and grins. Did this dude ever stop smiling? Kyungsoo narrows his eyes as the guy reaches behind his back for something.

“Alright I’m late for a meeting so if you wouldn’t mind, ooooomph!”

In his shock, Kyungsoo doesn’t realise that the (still unnamed) guy has calmly shoved a whole éclair into his mouth. Before he has time to react, he’s met with another blinding grin that morphs into a smirk.

“You know, you’re much more endearing when you’re quiet.”

Kyungsoo only recovers by the time that redheaded jerk has made his escape, and swears as he rushes off to his meeting. Predictably, Jongdae is leaning on the doorframe, cackling at Kyungsoo’s humiliation. Kyungsoo delivers a swift and precise jab to Jongdae’s soft stomach, grinning for the first time today at his best friend’s pain.

When he sits down, he notices Junmyeon pouting and very unsubtly looking at his watch. Kyungsoo does what he does best and throws an éclair at the hypocrite.

“Alright, enough violence for the morning, Soo,” Jongdae says. “We have actual work to discuss…”

Kyungsoo counts to 3.

“And then, holy shit, we need to gossip about what just happened! That was like, a sexually charged exchange of glares between you and…”

“Alright, later, Jongdae,” Junmyeon cuts him off and Kyungsoo wants to kill him for it. He nearly got to find out that jerk’s name. Which he only wanted to know so he could assign a name to the pretty face he was going to be bashing in an hour’s time. No other reason.

“So, Kyungsoo, as Jongdae and I were just discussing, today, we’re meeting with an up-and-coming producer over at SM who wants to do a collaboration with one of our guys,” Junmyeon looks at his watch. “In fact, he should’ve been here… 5 minutes ago.”

“Like you, Soo,” Jongdae pipes in unhelpfully.

“Why don’t you just shut the fuck up? Spare everyone’s ears,” Kyungsoo reminds him much more helpfully.

A nervous laugh from the doorway makes all three men turn in slight horror.

“Umm… I can come back…”

Junmyeon bolts out of his seat faster than Kyungsoo has ever seen the man move. “No, no, Mr Park, come in, come in. We were just… chatting.”

Kyungsoo snorts as he turns to face the newcomer then stops midway. It’s the red-haired jerk. Red-haired jerk is standing in front of him. Red-haired jerk is a record producer.

“Umm, Soo, close your mouth. Gaping isn’t pretty,” Jongdae pipes in unhelpfully again. Kyungsoo really has to buy Jongdae something to help with that. Maybe a sewing machine? That’d be expensive though. Maybe he could just chase Jongdae around the office with some sticky tape?

“Okay, Kyungsoo, please stop plotting Jongdae’s murder and greet Mr Park.”

Kyungsoo glares at Junmyeon, then nods stiffly at the red-haired jerk. “Hello Mr Park.”

Said redhead grins widely and vigorously shakes each man’s hand before proceeding to blast their eardums. “NO NEED FOR FORMALITIES! JUST CALL ME CHANYEOL!”

“Oh my god, inside voice, please use your inside voice.”

“Soo! Don’t be rude!”

“Shit, did I say that out loud. Shit, did I swear?”

“Soo!”

Chanyeol laughs heartily, slapping poor Junmyeon as he does so, nearly slamming him into the table. “I take back what I said! You’re just as endearing when you’re not muted!” While Kyungsoo blushes heavily at the éclair reference and Junmyeon simply looks on with confusion, the red-haired jerk proceeds to laugh even harder at his own joke, this time launching into seal clap mode.

Kyungsoo looks on with pity as his poor boss struggles to regain his composure. “If you don’t mind, I’d really like to get this meeting started.” Chanyeol, who seems to have finally come off his high, assents and plops down into the seat directly next to Kyungsoo. When there are approximately twenty other seats in the room he could’ve taken. Kyungsoo discreetly shuffles away from the jerk, only to find that Chanyeol much less discreetly pulls Kyungsoo’s chair back towards him.

“What the fuck?”

“Kyungsoo!” And oh god, Junmyeon’s face is red now. Kyungsoo gives a high-pitched eep and dutifully allows his poor, overworked boss to continue.

“So, Mr Park…”

“Chanyeol.”

“Mr Park…”

“Chan…”

“Dude, don’t bother,” Jongdae interrupts. “Junnie over here is as formal as Soo over there is rude and abrasive. I like to think of it as their… personal charms.” The two jerks grin at each other while Junmyeon’s face only reddens further.

“May I speak…?”

“Umm yeah? We’re waiting, Junmyeon,” Jongdae smiles his best kittenish smile and Kyungsoo wants to slap it off him. Junmyeon’s nostrils flare noticeably, but he continues.

“Mr Park has aspirations for the R&B scene, but is still searching for a singer.”

“Yeah, SM is great, but I’m looking for someone who just has this specific vocal colour,” Chanyeol adds. “I would work with Baekhyun, but uhh…” He shakes his head. “That aside, I’m here to see if anyone here is interested in working with me on an EP or something.”

Kyungsoo quickly types down everything Junmyeon and Chanyeol are discussing, while nibbling on the very éclair that had been shoved into his mouth earlier. Shocking red hair and horrifyingly loud personality aside, Kyungsoo can appreciate Chanyeol’s passion for music. A little part of him is jealous that Chanyeol has managed to make something of his dreams, while Kyungsoo is stuck here, simply doing the paperwork for all the singers and musicians whose shoes he wishes he was in. But overall, he’s made peace with it over the years. Anything other than inheriting his father’s law firm. If his brother didn’t have to do it, why did he?

“Sooooooooo!”

Kyungsoo glares at Jongdae. “What?”

“You didn’t say bye to Chanyeollieeee!”

“Huh?” Kyungsoo looks around, and indeed, neither Junmyeon nor Chanyeol are in the room anymore.

“They went to talk to some of the trainees and idols while you were off in dreamland. Chanyeol pouted when he left ‘cos you didn’t respond. I think Junmyeon just increased his chance of a haemorrhage.” Jongdae raises his eyebrow and closes in towards him with a gleam in his eyes.

Shit. Kyungsoo looks around the room for an emergency exit, gives up, and counts to three.

One…

Two…

“Oh my god! You and Chanyeol! I swear I almost squealed when you two flirted!”

“We didn’t flirt!”

“He shoved an éclair in your mouth. Meaning… he wants to shove his…”

*SMACK*

“Oww, Soo, that really hurt!”

“Keep talking, and I’ll give you something to hurt about.”

“No thanks! Go be kinky with Chanyeol instead.”

*SMACK SMACK SMACK*

*THUMP*

“Shit, Jongdae, are you okay?”

****

“Fuck you, Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo shuffles sheepishly towards his best friend and gives him a big, fluffy teddy bear with I’M SORRY emblazoned on its stomach.

“ _Now_ we’re best friends, eh?” Jongdae quips, wincing as he presses the ice pack to his head.

“Sorry Jongdae,” Kyungsoo chokes out. “I didn’t mean to knock you out…”

“Ugh never mind, it’s fine. Stop pouting. I can’t stand your adorable heart-shaped lips,” Jongdae pulls Kyungsoo in for a brief hug before tugging at his ears. Hard.

“OWW! Fuck you, Jongdae! I take back my apology!”

Junmyeon chooses that moment to walk in and regret is all over his face as he sees Jongdae with an ice pack to his head, cuddling a giant teddy bear (as well as the smaller teddy bear with an apology printed on it). He shakes his head and walks right back out. Kyungsoo hears ominous mumblings about blood pressure levels and losing precious life years, and decides to give his poor boss a wide berth.

“Hmm, do you think we should tone it down a bit before Junmyeon has a stroke?” Jongdae and Kyungsoo ponder for a moment before shaking their heads in sync.

“Nah.”

****

“So, Mr Park, have you found anyone you’d like to work with?” Junmyeon asks hopefully, and Kyungsoo winces because Chanyeol looks like a kicked puppy right now.

“Sorry, Junmyeon, I haven’t.”

Junmeyon’s face morphs into a combination of rage and depression and before he can redden further, Jongdae pats his shoulder.

“I just… I’m looking for a deeper voice, one that’s like… honey? All the singers I’ve met are fantastic, believe me, I’m just looking for _the_ voice.” Kyungsoo wonders for a moment if his voice would be what Chanyeol is looking for, before he scoffs at himself and continues typing the meeting minutes.

Junmyeon smiles stiffly. “Well, we’ve got a couple of groups overseas right now. Maybe you can meet them when their schedules allow it, and see if one of them are what you’re looking for.”

Chanyeol nods in assent. “I really am sorry…”

Jongdae waves him off. “Don’t worry about it, Chanyeol! Junmyeon here just needs to relax. It’s music, can’t force it.”

Junmyeon sighs. “While we do have a timeline to adhere to, Jongdae is correct. Take your time. I don’t want to rush you.”

The four men sit in silence for a while, before Chanyeol turns to Kyungsoo. “So like, what do you do?”

Kyungsoo looks up, his glasses falling slightly astray. “Who, me?”

“Are you a singer?” Chanyeol is looking at him so earnestly but Kyungsoo can’t bear it. He laughs the hardest he’s laughed since Jongdae sat on a thumb tack and ran around the office clutching his ass and screeching from hell to back.

“No, I wish. I just get coffees, and sandwiches, and type up everything that’s said.”

Jongdae sniffs. “Please, he’s wasting his---”

Kyungsoo hisses at Jongdae, who looks away bashfully.

“Right, sensitive topic. Sorry.”

Kyungsoo can see Chanyeol debating over whether to probe further, but thankfully, the latter seems to leave the issue alone. Until he starts fidgeting in his seat, that is.

“It’s just, your voice is really nice, I thought maybe…”

“I don’t sing.” Kyungsoo shuts his laptop and briskly walks out of the room, leaving behind a shellshocked Chanyeol.

“What was that about?”

“Ahh, our cute little Kyungsoo doesn’t like…”

Kyungsoo rushes back into the room and slams a hand over Jongdae’s mouth. Junmyeon buries his head in his hands as the pair scream and enter a catfight.

“Really though, Kyungsoo, I’d like to hear you sing.”

The room falls frighteningly silent.

*SMACK*

“What the fuck, Kyungsoo?! Don’t knock me out again!”

****

You see, Kyungsoo isn’t bad at singing at all. But if asked to sing in front of others, he will probably death glare you to hell and back before proceeding to knock you unconscious, as Jongdae will passionately insist.

This all stems from a dreadful, awful, completely terrifying high school experience that Kyungsoo swears turned him off music forever. Jongdae thinks he’s just being dramatic. The one time he’d dared to voice that had been the very first time he’d been gifted with Kyungsoo’s apology bear.

Kyungsoo thus only sings to himself when he is completely sure no one is listening. Like in the shower, with the water flowing around him, before a disgruntled neighbour bangs on the wall next to him and sends him into a panic attack. Or into his pillow, blasting out high notes until his throat is sore and he runs out of breath.

Sometimes, he’ll even risk it in the one of the company’s recording booths, but only late after work when he knows everyone has gone home.

Today is one of those days. The stress of knocking Jongdae unconscious and having to put up with (read: salivate at) the handsome red-haired jerk is perfect emotional material to draw from, Kyungsoo thinks, as he sings along with Baekhyun’s latest acclaimed single. If Junmyeon ever found out though, he’d probably finally have a stroke at his colleague’s outright betrayal of their company.

As he plays around with the chorus, throwing in some of his own ad-libs, he notices that the light in the hallway seems brighter than usual. He probably just accidentally turned on more lights than usual, Kyungsoo figures. Which is perfectly reasonable, until he turns to the chair normally reserved for JYP and sees that it’s not empty.

Kyungsoo stands in the booth for a solid minute, gaping at Chanyeol, before he slams open the door, pushes past Chanyeol and makes his escape. For a moment, Kyungsoo thinks he’s safe, until he pats down his pocket, and _shit_ , he forgot his phone in there. Which means, _shit_ , he’ll have to turn back and face Chanyeol, and _holy_ _shit_ , that’s not something he wants to deal with right now.

His phone, however, is one of his life’s very key necessities, and Kyungsoo cannot go a night without it. He firmly believes that it is essential to maintaining his productivity and schedule, not because it simply provides a useful distraction from his loneliness in his empty apartment. Taking a deep breath, Kyungsoo turns back into the studio, where Chanyeol is still standing, seemingly lost in thought.

 _Great, maybe I can sneak past him_ , Kyungsoo thinks, as he zeroes in on his phone. Just before he manages to escape though, he is stopped by a firm grip on his arm.

“You… can sing.”

Shit.

“I just like to throw stuff together. No big deal,” Kyungsoo tries to shake off Chanyeol, who only tightens his grip.

“No, you’re… perfect,” Chanyeol says wondrously, as if angels are singing to him, blessing him with all their grace. Kyungsoo half-expects Jongdae to jump out of nowhere and call this love at first sight, or Junmyeon to stomp in and yell at him for staying past work hours. Instead, Chanyeol simply continues to stare at him as if he’s some mad scientist and Kyungsoo is his Eureka moment. Chanyeol’s mouth is slightly open, and his eyes are somewhat glazed over, and man, Kyungsoo’s got it bad if he’s noticing all this.

“I need you for this. Your voice is perfect.”

Kyungsoo laughs. “Okay, joke’s over. I’m not a singer. I’m just the PA who’s leeching off some overtime, which I pay back to Junmyeon anyway with coffees and croissants and…”

“No,” Chanyeol bristles. “I want _you_ on this.”

“Why not any of the _actual_ singers here?”

Chanyeol is quiet for a moment. Kyungsoo uses it to flee the room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kyungsoo and Chanyeol have a meaningful conversation.

“Fuck… fuck fuck fuck!”

Kyungsoo swears as he blindly fumbles for his phone, and picks up the incoming call.

“What.”

“Good morning to you too, Kyungsoo,” Junmyeon’s voice filters through the speaker. “I don’t want to be abrupt, but… you’re kinda late.”

The cogs in Kyungsoo’s mind start turning. He glances at the wall clock. 10am.

“Shit. Sorry. I sorta stayed up late last night…”

“No, no, don’t rush. Chanyeol kindly offered to give me a lift…” Junmyeon trails off suspiciously.

“And…?”

“Umm…”

“Junmyeon,” Kyungsoo grits out. “What did you do?”

Junmyeon takes a deep breath. Then, “We’re kinda parked outside your apartment building.”

“WHAT?!”

Kyungsoo rushes to his bedroom window, and lo and behold, there’s a sleek black Porsche on the road.

“Junmyeon, why did you give him my address?”

“Well, he asked! And I thought, well why not, we’re all friends anyway, right?”

“…”

“Come on, Kyungsoo, don’t be like that. Chanyeol’s going to be working with us for quite a while, so I want you two to get along, okay?”

“When did you start calling him by his first name?”

“Way to focus on the important things!” Jongdae’s voice shrieks.

Kyungsoo nearly drops his phone out of shock. “Jongdae! What the fuck are you doing there? Is everyone down there right now?”

“Yup,” Jongdae replies cheerfully, drawing out the ‘p’. “Better get your pants on quickly, Soo!”

Before Kyungsoo can yell back at his perverted, self-proclaimed best friend, he hears Jongdae yelp as Junmyeon wrests back control of his phone.

“What Jongdae said, but in slightly less crude terms. We’re waiting.” And the goddamn hypocrite hangs up, as if Kyungsoo doesn’t suffer the same thing everyday waiting for him.

Kyungsoo screams at the dial tone and considers chucking the phone at the Porsche sitting innocently outside.

****

“See if I ever buy coffee for you shitheads again,” Kyungsoo grumbles as he dumps a bag of pastries on the meeting table. The brat Sehun had laughed at him again today. This time, it was because Kyungsoo had forgotten to put his contacts in so was walking around with his massive nerd glasses that engulfed his face. But then again, the brat had given him another bag of fresh croissants after laughing at him.

“You say that at least twice a week,” Jongdae replies, already stuffing a whole croissant into his mouth.

“Well maybe this time I actually mean it,” Kyungsoo snipes back.

Jongdae just stuffs another croissant into his mouth while Junmyeon, the bastard, chuckles and reaches for his almond milk latte.

Kyungsoo releases a war cry when he sees Chanyeol tentatively reach for the last croissant.

“SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! Hands off!”

An awkward silence ensues for a few seconds before Jongdae roars with laughter. “Did you just hiss? You’re actually a grumpy old cat.”

“My croissant,” Kyungsoo simply grumbles as he snatches it away from Chanyeol.

As Kyungsoo nibbles on his prize with pleasure, Chanyeol simply looks around the room and wonders what the hell he got himself into.

“So umm… Kyungsoo? About last night?”

“You heard nothing.”

Jongdae, the nosy person he is, leans forward and wiggles his eyebrows. “What happened last night?”

Junmyeon knocks the back of Jongdae’s head, ignoring his pained cry. “Jongdae, hush.”

Chanyeol shuffles closer to Kyungsoo, who continues to stubbornly nibble on his croissant. “I want you on my song. Your voice… I’ve never heard anything like it.”

Kyungsoo petulantly turns the other way. “I don’t sing.”

“But…”

“I said, I don’t fucking sing.” Kyungsoo sets down his croissant and storms out of the room.

Chanyeol feels his heart break a little.

“I didn’t mean to…”

Jongdae sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose.

“It’s not your fault, Chanyeol.”

****

High school: junior year. Kyungsoo is a bright-eyed kid who wants the main role in _Les Miserables_. What better way to release his teenage angst than through singing your heart out as Jean Valjean? Kyungsoo, at this point of his youth, is still a fresh-faced kid who isn’t afraid of the world. He bravely signs up for auditions, even though about 50 kids are gunning for the spot. But that’s okay, 15-year-old Kyungsoo thinks, it’s not about whether he gets the part or not – it’s about whether he tried. Yay for positive thinking!

That’s great and all, until he gets up on stage after his name is called. The music starts, and he opens his mouth… only to let out a giant squeak as his stupid voice cracks. And if Kyungsoo had only looked up, he would have seen the director giving him an encouraging thumbs up.

Instead, he panics. He shuts his eyes tightly, and hears the laughter spread through the crowd. As mortifying as this already is, Kyungsoo just has to trip as he races off the stage, face-planting and letting out an even louder squeak as his voice cracks yet again.

It’s safe to say that he has never tried singing in front of people again ever since this traumatic experience. Again, Jongdae thinks he’s just being dramatic but he’s only ever dared to voice this opinion once.

And so, to this day, Kyungsoo continues to hide his voice from the world. Poor Chanyeol never stood a chance.

****

“I think you exaggerated a few details, Jongdae.”

“Oh hush, Junmyeon, you were there too.”

“Yes, and I did more than just give a thumbs up. I helped him off the stage and gave him some tissues!”

“Well, while you were at it, maybe you could’ve helped with his crippling anxiety too! But that didn’t happen, did it?”

“I didn’t see you do anything! You just went on stage and shut everyone up with your surprisingly good singing!”

“Well, I’m sorry that people are so jealous of me. But I can’t help it that I’m popular. And what do you mean _surprisingly good_?”

“I’m just saying…”

Chanyeol carefully moves out of the room, sensing some underlying… _tension_ in the two men’s bickering and deciding to let them _release_ this tension in privacy. When he turns the corner, he doesn’t expect to find a sniffling Kyungsoo slumped against a wall.

“Umm… are you okay?”

Kyungsoo wipes his nose on his sleeve and faces the wall. “I’m fine.”

Chanyeol pushes down the urge to coo at the sight. “You don’t look fine.” He sees Kyungsoo resolutely facing away from him, and sighs.

“Do you need a tissue?”

Kyungsoo sniffles some more, before answering with a croak, “Okay.”

After a minute of intermittent nose-blowing and sniffling, Chanyeol tries again. “Wanna talk about it?”

Kyungsoo is silent for a minute, his eyebrows furrowed, before he lets out the saddest sigh Chanyeol has ever heard.

“Jongdae already told you, didn’t he? That I don’t… can’t sing in front of people.”

“But you want to.”

Kyungsoo looks up, surprised. “What?”

Chanyeol continues, undeterred, “You want to sing though, don’t you? I don’t think you’re here because you’re genuinely interested in being Junmyeon’s assistant. Deep inside, you wish you were the one in the studio recording albums.”

“It’s never going to happen.”

Chanyeol bristles at that. “And why the hell not? I heard you in the studio. You’re a damn good singer.”

“I said it’s never going to happen!” Kyungsoo snaps. The whole office falls silent at Kyungsoo’s outburst, and Jongdae, that eavesdropper, tentatively peeks out of the meeting room.

“Kyungsoo…”

“Can’t you just leave me alone, you… you red-haired jerk?!” With that, Kyungsoo stomps away in a huff, and Chanyeol’s heart breaks again at the sight.

Jongdae walks over to Chanyeol and tentatively pats his shoulder. “Don’t feel too bad about it. Kyungsoo… he gets really worked up whenever someone mentions his past.”

Little does he know, Chanyeol is standing there, gears in his mind already turning as he formulates a plan. If Kyungsoo won’t willingly sing, Chanyeol decides, there has to be some way to make him want to sing, once and for all.

“I’m going to become his friend, and make him sing on my album,” Chanyeol declares, and rushes out the door after his just-adopted muse.

Jongdae feels a strange sense of warmth rushing through him at the young man’s determination to get Kyungsoo, the kid he’s known for years, to finally do something about his inner desire to sing. Because it’s there, Jongdae knows it, Kyungsoo just refuses to acknowledge it.

Junmyeon finally rocks up on the scene, biting on the croissant that Kyungsoo had forgotten in his haste to leave.

“My question is, are they gonna fuck?”

“AHHH WAEEEEE!” Jongdae screams, scandalised. “You perverted bastard! But lol yeah, same. I’m betting on yes. If I win…”

“But I’m betting on yes too.”

“Then I guess we’ll both win,” Jongdae responds happily.

“That’s not the point of a bet…”

****

Kyungsoo is somehow in the studio again. It’s funny, because he literally denied that he wanted to sing a moment ago, and yet he finds himself here. Kyungsoo isn’t laughing though, instead he’s sniffling and making sure he’s locked the door behind him this time. He makes a beeline for the couch, flings himself onto it, and sobs into the cushion.

The laughter at his failed performance still rings in his ears to this day. He remembers the way his feet remained glued to the ground, as he stood there, unable to move, unable to get away from everyone. The moment he faceplanted is forever etched into his mind, and Kyungsoo weakly pounds at the couch to release his frustration.

As Kyungsoo’s sniffling calms down, he notices that someone has been knocking on the locked door. Gentle knocking, but insistent all the same.

“Kyungsoo? I know you’re in there.”

Shit, Kyungsoo thinks. Chanyeol is on the other side of the door. Against his better judgement, he shuffles over to the door and unlocks it, allowing an unwieldy giant to come bumbling in. Upon seeing Kyungsoo’s tear-stained face, he softens immediately.

“Hey… why are you crying? You know…” Chanyeol grins. “I haven’t forgiven you for calling me a red-haired jerk.”

In spite of himself, Kyungsoo snorts.

“It’s an important issue!” Chanyeol huffs. “I demand an apology and some form of compensation.”

“Get over yourself.”

Chanyeol, elated at Kyungsoo’s response, only grins more widely. “Nup, not until you shout me some takoyaki. I’m craving some really bad right now.”

“Oh really?”

“Yep! So we better going!” And with that, Chanyeol lifts Kyungsoo up, bridal style, ignores Kyungsoo’s furious punches, and walks out of the studio back towards the office.

“Oi! Let me down! This is only affirming the fact that you’re a red-haired jerk, you know!”

Chanyeol only laughs and grips him more tightly.

****

Chanyeol eventually sets Kyungsoo down a few metres outside of the building, when his back starts complaining at the added weight, but waves Kyungsoo off when he asks if Chanyeol’s okay.

“You’re just a tad heavy, Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo scoffs, heavily offended. “Maybe you shouldn’t carry random people and throw them into the air multiple times.”

Chanyeol shrugs. “I’d catch you anyway.”

Kyungsoo pretends his heart doesn’t stutter at that.

****

“I didn’t always want to be a producer.”

Kyungsoo pauses midway through a bite and looks over at Chanyeol, who’s finished off three sticks while Kyungsoo is just finishing off his first one.

“Well it was long-term goal, I guess. But not at first. When I was young, I wanted to be an idol. I passed the audition and I trained for a few years. I was ready to debut as part of a group…” Chanyeol trails off, wistfully looking up.

“What happened?”

“The company… they found out that I was gay, and dating one of the other trainees. They wanted us to break up and cover everything up, but I refused. I guess you could say, I’m lucky they let me work towards becoming a producer instead. Instead, nowadays, the fact that I’m gay, it’s just an open secret. An inconvenience, at best.”

Kyungsoo tentatively rubs Chanyeol’s shoulder, who offers a soft smile in return. “It was a long time ago, and in retrospect, I’m glad it happened. I’ve done stuff I would never have been able to do if I’d been an idol.”

“What happened to the other trainee?”

Chanyeol lets out a soft chuckle. “Ah, he’s doing well. I won’t tell you who he is, just for the sake of preserving his confidentiality, but he’s doing really well nowadays. In fact, you can probably guess who he is.”

Kyungsoo realises, he is indeed able to guess who it is, but decides not to dwell on the issue for now.

“Kyungsoo, it’s okay to be scared sometimes.” Chanyeol takes Kyungsoo’s hand into his, and looks at him with wide, sincere eyes. “But that shouldn’t stop you from doing what you want.”

 “Thanks, Chanyeol.”

Kyungsoo tries to ignore the way his heart stutters again at Chanyeol’s blinding smile.

****

“You know, it’d be nice if I got some more lines…”

Kyungsoo looks up from his phone at Sehun. “Huh?”

“Never mind,” the brat replies. His hair is no longer rainbow, instead it’s a confusing shade of orange. Kyungsoo can’t tell whether it’s intentional or a dye job gone awry.

“You look different today, Kyungsoo.”

“It’s hyung to you, brat.”

Sehun only shrugs and waits for Kyungsoo to continue.

“I had a meaningful talk with someone yesterday. It was unexpected but… nice, I guess?”

Sehun pouts at him. “Are you saying our daily conversations aren’t meaningful?”

Kyungsoo chuckles at the brat and ruffles his hair. Sehun might deny it, but he likes the treatment. “Very meaningful. Much deep. Such insight.”

“Did you just doge-meme me? I’m legitimately offended.”

“It’s just an SM producer who’s scouting our singers. I don’t know if you know him, his name is Park Chanyeol?”

Kyungsoo has never seen anything beyond a bored frown or a pout on Sehun’s face, and is completely thrown back by the brat’s awed expression.

“Park Chanyeol?! Hyung, please you have to let me meet him.”

“Where’s all this respect coming from all of a sudden?”

“Please, hyung. I’ll do nearly anything.”

“Hold up, what’s so great about him?”

To Kyungsoo’s continuing shock, Sehun blushes. “He’s really cool. Plus, he doesn’t really hide the fact that he’s… you know.”

Kyungsoo watches Sehun’s starstruck expression and slowly understands. Sehun’s struggled too. Kyungsoo thinks back to the time he found Sehun sniffling outside this bakery. It’d taken a single line, “My family disowned me,” for Kyungsoo to understand exactly what had happened. By some fortune, the bakery’s owner had practically adopted Sehun.

“Kyungsoo, stop distracting my younger brother.”

Ah, speak of the devil, or in this, the angel, Kyungsoo turns around and sees Yixing walking in.

“Ah… Hi hyung.”

Yixing walks over to both of them and ruffles their hair, ignoring their shared protests.

“So, what’s this I hear about Park Chanyeol?”

“Kyungsoo has been talking to him! I… really want to meet him!”

“Ah, is that so?” Yixing turns to him. “Kyungsoo, I know Sehun can be a brat sometimes, but could you perhaps set something up? I think… it’d be good for Sehun.”

Kyungsoo would never refuse this angel. “Yes, hyung.”

The brat (Kyungsoo really needs to stop referring to him as that in his mind) dumps some extra croissants into Kyungsoo’s bag. “Here, have some free croissants, and get out of my sight. Only come back when Park Chanyeol is with you.”

“I’m older than you, you know!”

****

Jongdae is shooting Kyungsoo tentative glances as he walks in.

“I’m fine, Jongdae.”

“…Yeah? That’s good to hear.” It’s times like this when Kyungsoo is reminded of just why this whiny man is his best friend.

“So what’d you and Chanyeol do on your date yesterday?” And now, Kyungsoo is reminded of just why he hates this whiny, and horribly nosy, man.

“We just talked.”

“That’s what they all say, Kyungsoo,” Jongdae singsongs.

They’re about to get to work when Junmyeon walks in and slams a file on his desk.

“I have a massive headache that has only been compounded today. Please tell me why Park Chanyeol is steadfastly refusing to work with anyone other than you, Kyungsoo.”

“I… I….” Kyungsoo stutters, unable to respond under Junmyeon’s withering glare.

“Hey Junmyeon, calm down,” Jongdae rebukes Junmyeon softly. “Kyungsoo is our friend.”

Junmyeon sighs. “Fine, I’m sorry for snapping at you.”

“No, it’s okay…”

Junmyeon shakes his head. “No, it really isn’t okay. I’m just tired. But still, I’d like to know why Park Chanyeol has turned down virtually every single singer in this company.”

“Because Kyungsoo has the perfect voice, and I want to work with him.”

The three of them turn around to see Chanyeol leaning in the doorway.

He zeroes in on Kyungsoo. “Look, I know this is sudden, but I think we could really pull off something great.”

“But I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“I know, I know! We’ll take it super slow, but I really want to do this with you, Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo ignores Jongdae’s cooing, “ _They’re so cute,”_ and stares at his hands.

“I don’t know…”

A hand is placed on his shoulder. Kyungsoo looks up to see Junmyeon smiling at him. “It’s unconventional, but surely you aren’t planning on just buying coffees and sandwiches for me for the rest of your life?”

“I’m comfortable doing this…”

“But you could be doing more, Kyungsoo.” Junmyeon pats him on the shoulder again. “You could be doing so much more. And for what it’s worth, I think you could’ve made a fantastic lead all those years ago.”

“Are we going to ignore that you rejected him?” Jongdae deadpans.

“I didn’t reject him! He pulled out!”

“That’s why you pull him back in!”

Chanyeol chuckles at the pair and tunes them out. “Ignoring their strange bickering full of innuendos, I’d really like this, Kyungsoo. Will you join me?”

For once in his life, Kyungsoo isn’t bogged down by images of faceplanting and hysterical laughter. He simply sees Chanyeol, physically and figuratively offering a hand to him.

“Okay, I’ll do it.”

Chanyeol’s brilliant grin makes Kyungsoo think he’s made the right choice.

“Whoo! Chansoo is officially sailing!”

“Shut up Jongdae.”


End file.
